Preface; the following is born of my own personal opinions, preferences, and principles. It is in no way intended to defame or challenge the views of others, nor to begin an argument or flame war. I simply felt compelled to sit down and express my recent and personal issues with Guild Wars 2 in the hopes that someone among the game’s community –a community I have long held above that of other MMOs due to its openness, helpful demeanor, and courtesy- would lead a sympathetic ear and perhaps offer some opinion or perspective that would help me make up my mind on if I plan to continue playing, or abandon the game at least until the next expansion.

First a bit about who I am as a player. I am, at my core, an avid role player. I get into MMORPGs more for the RPG part than the MMO part, and dislike anything but casual competitive play. I lack the skill to compete in PvP against more experienced and dedicated players, as well as the desire to do so. Likewise one of the largest draws of the Guild Wars series to me was, and continues to be, the lack of raids and what I have always felt raids meant. That is to say repeating content, perhaps dozens or hundreds of times, as the primary form of late game content. Because of this I have zero interest in The Fractals of the Mists dungeon. Indeed I dislike that dungeon on principle and refuse to set foot inside even once. And, of course, this means I have no need nor interest in ascended equipment.

I am writing this up because over the last few months my enjoyment of Guild Wars 2 has suffered what I consider to be a pair of devastating blows. The first came when I finally completed the personal story, and the story mode of each dungeon. My progress was delayed by a few months simply because I grew to hate the class I chose as my main, and deleted it to reroll another one. I did this instead of simply rolling an alt because for me my investment in my main is, beyond any doubt, the number one reason I play games. Arkham Creed is my online identity, the name I have used on countless forums and the character I played in every MMO of my history. It is not at all a stretch to say that if I cannot accomplish something with Arkham, I have little to no desire to even attempt it.

Arkham has long been a rouge character, something difficult in MMOs as I have a, put gently, long standing disagreement with the MMO genre over what exactly defines a stealth class and stealth gameplay. As you may imagine this meant that Arkham began as a thief, however by level sixty I had grown to completely despise everything about the Guild Wars 2 thief, not just the expectedly underwhelming stealth. Rerolling as an engineer was a compromise that still doesn’t fully sit well with me, as it is hard to reconcile who Arkham is as a character and how I envision him with the gameplay I adore from the engineer.

However this isn’t the blow I mentioned. That was merely why it took so long to reach that final instance. Long story short because of a discrepancy between the performance of my computer and that of the party leader of said instance I missed the end of the story. I am not referring to the dungeon that I could simply repeat, but rather the once in a –character’s- lifetime instance afterward. I missed the final speech and cut scene. I missed the celebration. And lacking the ability to replay the instance or even just watch the scene left me disheartened. Yes I could see it with an alt, or I could see it on youtube, but I must reiterate; if I can’t do it as Arkham I have no desire to do it at all. What is my core engagement of the game was utterly and irrevocably destroyed by a single system performance issue. Even moving forward with an expansion will not help, as there is now and likely will always be a gap in Arkham’s story. It was almost enough to have me abandon the game outright when it happened, but I pressed on.

The second and more recent event has to deal with endgame. I have long defended Guild Wars 2 on the topic of endgame, and have felt that, personally, going after a legendary skin was all the endgame I needed to tide me over until an expansion. However I came to realize something only a few days again when my fiancée began her long quest for Twilight; legendary weapons are meaningless to an engineer. With my build I spend the vast, vast majority of my time using a kit, typically either flamethrower or elixir gun, and this would make my efforts for a legendary irrelevant because I’d never actually see it, never use it.

I could just change my build of course, and have sought advice in another thread about that, but have since come to a conclusion on the topic; I’m not going to. The whole reason I am playing as an engineer and not another profession is because of my current play-style and build. I love the engineer because of the kits and the versatility that offers. To play an engineer without a kit, or to downplay my use of kits, would undermine the whole point of having rerolled into that profession in the first place. So my choice boils down to either playing the profession I enjoy, but having next to nothing actually holding me to the game, or renew my efforts for a legendary, thus regaining that goal and that purpose, but loose the gameplay I enjoy and loose the whole reason I play an engineer. It is distressing.

And that is my problem as it stands. So much of the things that held me to this game have been called into question, and I cannot see a way to renew my interest and enjoyment of the game. So far I’ve held on because of my fiancée, and because she and I do enjoy playing together. But for me my time with the game is becoming increasingly strenuous, rather than the relaxing entertainment a game should be. I don’t want to leave because I enjoy the game, in theory, and because I want to be there for my lover (after all I am the one who introduced her to the Guild Wars series years ago), yet at the same time I no longer have a goal to keep my sights set to, nor the anticipation of a story to continue. And I find myself wondering what the community thinks of this, and if you have some new perspective I may find helpful.

[moved to Q&A as TA is for discussion aspects of GW2 and you are looking for advice - Arduin]

First of all, and I mean this a compliment, you have got some amazing suspension of disbelief most people just don't have. You're more creative than the lousy story in this game is.

I just cannot fathom how someone with your mindset has stuck it out this far. But if you want advice from someone who doesn't think in the same terms at all:

1. Uh call me crazy but isn't half the fun of 'role' playing creating new 'roles' to play? I understand not every profession is for everyone (I have very little interest in the ranger myself), but why not just create another character?

2. Don't quit but do take a break. Seriously it's okay to just not play it for a few weeks or months. Every game I've ever played and liked I've taken breaks from before I shelved it. Burnout is easy to do.

3. Do 1 & 2. Usually if I take a sabbatical, I come back on a new character for a clean start. Just saying is all.

There's no need to "quit" GW2, you play it, or you don't. Fancy a jumping puzzle? log on and due one. Completely bored of the game? don't log on for a couple month until you feel like it again.
You sound like you've played a lot already, likely a few hundred hours since release, so maybe you've just reached the point where you're bored of the game and are now going over the top to justify your simple feeling of perfectly normal boredom with a really long post.
Your philosophy on your character is cool and all, but you just sound like your over justifying yourself with this. Your character related reasons just sound like obsessive nitpicks (my apologies if that sounds derogatory, I mean no offense).

If the legendary is really a reason, couldn't you just aim for it anyways? add it to your character's inner story, you obtained a legendary artifact. The rifle is pretty cool, even if you don't actively use it, you could whip it out now and again. And the point of going after a legendary in the first place is generally just an excuse or goal to focus your time spent on the game.

Interesting post. I read this a few times deciding if and how to respond. Much as I believe no response will be entirely appropriate, here goes nothing...

Arkham Creed, on 01 March 2013 - 05:13 AM, said:

Preface; the following is born of my own personal opinions, preferences, and principles. It is in no way intended to defame or challenge the views of others, nor to begin an argument or flame war. I simply felt compelled to sit down and express my recent and personal issues with Guild Wars 2 in the hopes that someone among the game’s community –a community I have long held above that of other MMOs due to its openness, helpful demeanor, and courtesy- would lead a sympathetic ear and perhaps offer some opinion or perspective that would help me make up my mind on if I plan to continue playing, or abandon the game at least until the next expansion.

Based on the rest of your post, very little is lost regardless of the choice to keep playing, or to shelve the game till the next expansion. The people who stand to 'lose' the most from not playing are actually the ones who concern themselves with keeping up with the release of new content, achievements and new gear tiers. That actually describes a good proportion of the player base, which fortunately you are not a part of. Consider first of all that you've held to the game and enjoy playing with your fiancée. For me, that alone would be a good reason to keep playing. Why is the game becoming 'strenuous'? Why is it no longer 'relaxing'? Based on the way you play and with no care taken to gear especially (only perhaps aesthetics since RP is important to you), some of the biggest reasons for 'grind' have already been removed.

Arkham Creed, on 01 March 2013 - 05:13 AM, said:

I am writing this up because over the last few months my enjoyment of Guild Wars 2 has suffered what I consider to be a pair of devastating blows. The first came when I finally completed the personal story, and the story mode of each dungeon. My progress was delayed by a few months simply because I grew to hate the class I chose as my main, and deleted it to reroll another one. I did this instead of simply rolling an alt because for me my investment in my main is, beyond any doubt, the number one reason I play games. Arkham Creed is my online identity, the name I have used on countless forums and the character I played in every MMO of my history. It is not at all a stretch to say that if I cannot accomplish something with Arkham, I have little to no desire to even attempt it.

Arkham has long been a rouge character, something difficult in MMOs as I have a, put gently, long standing disagreement with the MMO genre over what exactly defines a stealth class and stealth gameplay. As you may imagine this meant that Arkham began as a thief, however by level sixty I had grown to completely despise everything about the Guild Wars 2 thief, not just the expectedly underwhelming stealth. Rerolling as an engineer was a compromise that still doesn’t fully sit well with me, as it is hard to reconcile who Arkham is as a character and how I envision him with the gameplay I adore from the engineer.

Well I have wondered once if they will ever implement a means for people to watch various cut scenes in their personal stories long after they have actually been done. I know there are a fair few gamers who found the personal storyline bland and didn't care much for it. But for those who did appreciate it, a feature that allows people to repeat a cut scene (not re-do a storyline with different choices) is a reasonable suggestion.

The greatest issue that you have with a choice of class appears to be the lack of a perfect match in this game. Pretty obvious and not unexpected. So in playing a game that does not offer you the perfect choice (which I accept would happen probably in most games), a compromise has to be made. No offense to you whatsoever, but I fail to see how it's possible to hate *everything* about a thief, after I've played one myself. We need to see what exactly it is you dislike about the thief, whether it's specific skills or weapon sets which you could probably avoid using entirely, or something a bit more difficult to deal with. Also, why exactly is the stealth 'underwhelming'?

An engineer sounds like a significant compromise. It's as far from a rouge as I'd imagine, and I wonder how an engineer would easily get stealth. Funny as this suggestion might sound, I was going to suggest to watch some videos at these forums on how some people play their thieves, see if there's any elements that you like, and then roll a thief again. If this time the class suits your fancy and you go on to complete the storyline dungeons, the party should disband after the Arah dungeon and you should head into the final celebration instance yourself to avoid any discrepancies. Remember that the celebration is for the 'Pact' and yourself, members in your party need not be included...I suspect you didn't run all the storymode dungeons with the same party members either.

Arkham Creed, on 01 March 2013 - 05:13 AM, said:

The second and more recent event has to deal with endgame. I have long defended Guild Wars 2 on the topic of endgame, and have felt that, personally, going after a legendary skin was all the endgame I needed to tide me over until an expansion. However I came to realize something only a few days again when my fiancée began her long quest for Twilight; legendary weapons are meaningless to an engineer. With my build I spend the vast, vast majority of my time using a kit, typically either flamethrower or elixir gun, and this would make my efforts for a legendary irrelevant because I’d never actually see it, never use it.

I could just change my build of course, and have sought advice in another thread about that, but have since come to a conclusion on the topic; I’m not going to. The whole reason I am playing as an engineer and not another profession is because of my current play-style and build. I love the engineer because of the kits and the versatility that offers. To play an engineer without a kit, or to downplay my use of kits, would undermine the whole point of having rerolled into that profession in the first place. So my choice boils down to either playing the profession I enjoy, but having next to nothing actually holding me to the game, or renew my efforts for a legendary, thus regaining that goal and that purpose, but loose the gameplay I enjoy and loose the whole reason I play an engineer. It is distressing.

Which is another reason why I suggest you give the thief a second chance and work towards the legendary shortbow. Virtually all thieves use a shortbow, and often.

Arkham Creed, on 01 March 2013 - 05:13 AM, said:

And that is my problem as it stands. So much of the things that held me to this game have been called into question, and I cannot see a way to renew my interest and enjoyment of the game. So far I’ve held on because of my fiancée, and because she and I do enjoy playing together. But for me my time with the game is becoming increasingly strenuous, rather than the relaxing entertainment a game should be. I don’t want to leave because I enjoy the game, in theory, and because I want to be there for my lover (after all I am the one who introduced her to the Guild Wars series years ago), yet at the same time I no longer have a goal to keep my sights set to, nor the anticipation of a story to continue. And I find myself wondering what the community thinks of this, and if you have some new perspective I may find helpful.

Please see above. If companionship is the fundamental reason why you still play this game (and also still enjoy the game), then *that* is the real goal and the primary motivator, not the legendary weapon. Personally I think companionship is key with a game like this, and I believe the reason why some folk rush the game, eventually make it to a legendary and then stand in Lion's Arch all day displaying it like a toy, only to then quit a week or two later saying "there's nothing left to be done" are actually lacking the companionship. The game is not lacking in things to do, but people are lacking in friends with whom to take part in activities.

I understand and sympathise with your concerns over this game. I have been on the verge of quitting for more than a month now too.
In short: I have a proposal that might help you solve one problem, not sure if it's acceptable to you:
I could start that story instance on one of my alts with you in party. I don't think you'll get to see Arkham in the dialogue cutscenes then, but maybe knowing that he was present in party will be an acceptable solution for you? You're welcome to mail me in-game (theoxygenthief.4806) if this sounds like a solution to you.

If you feel the need to have continuity story wise why not introduce the technical failure as a story element in your characters story? Obviously I am not trying to defend the technical issue you experienced, its undeniably a huge shame. But ultimately you have 2 options. You can replay it using your own character if you really desire, you just need someone who is willing to take you along with them when they're doing their own mission. Or else another option you could always have your characters story to include the gap and by that I mean it could be that Arkham got so exhausted by the battle that just as the battle ended he lost consciousness and had his companions telling him what happened afterwards when he came back to it (that could even just be the youtube video for your benefit).
There will be other stories like the living story thats currently unfolded, its a shame to throw all that away if you're enjoying the game just because of a stupid technical issue

As for the legendary weapon you have several options in my opinion. Either just dont go for a legendary at all, go for something less demanding like a named exotic. It will still be a goal that takes months but it will feel less of a waste if for the most time you will not be using them, or even not using them at all. You could always just use them as an ornament while out of combat or roleplaying so to speak. You could also diversify a little. I am currently leveling an engineer, but its still a bit low level (23) and I do love the grenade kit a lot and its really useful in large encounters but for a single target double pistol is better imho and you can quickly swap between them anyway, even in large encounters while some of the grenade types are on cool down shooting of a quick static shock and blowtorch brings in a good bit more damage then a regular grenade would do. Maybe as I level a bit more I might find other kits to switch to while stuff is cooling down so maybe this suggestion isnt that good i dont know, just saying from my experience so far.

bottomline if you're enjoying the game and want to continue playing I dont see these as things that should have you stop. Of course the decision is ultimately yours and yours alone.

Opps sorry didnt realize theoxygenthief had already suggested the join another character storyline mission option. If I may suggest, its a golden opportunity and you really should take it, I was afraid it might be hard to find someone who is doing that mission but there you have it go for it dont let a technical issue ruin your fun.

If story-related content is your primary driver for playing (I empathise since the RPG elements of story/exploration/character customisation are my main fun centres in an MMO, too), there's no harm in taking a break until the next big story dump hits in the form of expansions and whatnot. Living Story is kinda lacklustre to me, so far, but maybe it'll get better.

I do feel that with MMOs, we put them on too high a pedestal and expect them to entertain with the same content long after your regular single-player game would have bored us. When you're paying a subscription, those expectations are justified, but not so much in a B2P MMO. GW1 kept me playing for 5-6 years, but that was multiple characters across all 3 campaigns + the EotN expansion. Another key replayability factor in MMOs is a good guild, which can make all the difference to content repetition being fun or a grind to you.

Like someone up above said, you don't need to 'quit' GW2. You can take a break from it and play something else for a while, and it'll still be around when you want to come back to it. But it's ultimately up to you, mate. You know yourself whether you're bored of a game or not. Games are meant to be fun, not work, and if you're ever in a position where you're not playing for fun, then personally that's when I put a game down.

All right, here's a novel idea - how about you join one of the ROLEPLAY Servers Guild Wars 2 has and start weaving stories and tales about your character to your heart's content?

You strike me as someone who could potentially have a wagon-load of fun with it and the fact that content is literally only restricted to your own personal motivation and the extent of your creativity it'd probably hit two birds with one stone.

And, indulge me for a moment, you could even go for your Legendary Rifle - you could show it off, you could actively use it in roleplay because nobody gives a damn whether you hit a mob with it for 100 or 10.000 Damage - it's the style that counts, ultimately. And you could create a story for your own legendary and how you acquire it that's unique to yourself and your character, something every other player in the game was bereft of.

So, go - you crazy butterfly and let your creative juices flow for the betterment of your game experience and that of others!

... for me my time with the game is becoming increasingly strenuous, rather than the relaxing entertainment a game should be.

You might want to consider simply not playing for a while. Do something else, either play another game, do something else on the computer, or just go do something else altogether. When you want to go back to the game, go back.

Quit and never look back. Life is too short to be miserable and there's far far far far better games out there to be had and played. Have you tried Elemental:Fallen Enchantress yet? Great game you'll love it.

Since a lot of people have already gone into the details and reasons I don't seem the need to do so myself.

What I do wonder however is what would compel someone to go to a forum to ask if he/she should continue spending their free time on something he/she does/doesn't enjoy. Especially since there is no consequence to either choice.

Don't like it, leave it then. Either for a while or for ever. Have you even considered just leaving it aside for a while? If you can't stop coming back or thinking about the game, well then obviously you're not done with it. If you don't then you'll just forget about it and move on to other horizons naturally.

If your fiancée keeps you into the game, then obviously you're going to get some other benefits out of it (which does not only mean what most of you will think ¬¬ ). In that case it's a bit of give and take. Surely there are worse things she could ask you? You'd prefer to have knitting contests instead?

One of the best things about GW2 is that quitting temporarily, taking a break, let it evolve a bit, etc is really a viable option as you don't "get left behind" nearly as much as in most other MMO titles...and as was iterated previously by others, if you have to ask, you already have your answer...

As others have said, you seem to need a break. Personally I don't chase after a legendary to keep me in the game, but I understand you're looking for a long term goal. If legendaries are your thing but don't want one because you never use your hand weapons as an engineer (big mistake in my opinion), and you don't want to do dungeons more than once, then I fail to see what end game means for you.

Maybe you could chase after a new skin? Cultural tier 3 for some races look amazing (eyes asura medium and heavy).

As has been said before on here, you only had to pay once for the game, so take a break and chill. The game will be waiting when you get back. It's not like your playing City of Heroes("Wait. What do you mean they closed up shop?").

As for thief, remember, basic things such as the right gear and Trait specs can influence your enjoyment of your role, and tailor your character to that role. Read up on them a bit more, and find how close to what you want you can make the thief. Also, a ranger can give you many of the same qualities that the thief gives. The good thing is, with the armors the same over the three medium classes, you can make them any style you want.

If your fiancée keeps you into the game, then obviously you're going to get some other benefits out of it (which does not only mean what most of you will think ¬¬ ). In that case it's a bit of give and take. Surely there are worse things she could ask you?

Yeah that is true, it's give and take, and if you don't like the taste it's not her fault

All right, here's a novel idea - how about you join one of the ROLEPLAY Servers Guild Wars 2 has and start weaving stories and tales about your character to your heart's content?

You strike me as someone who could potentially have a wagon-load of fun with it and the fact that content is literally only restricted to your own personal motivation and the extent of your creativity it'd probably hit two birds with one stone.

And, indulge me for a moment, you could even go for your Legendary Rifle - you could show it off, you could actively use it in roleplay because nobody gives a damn whether you hit a mob with it for 100 or 10.000 Damage - it's the style that counts, ultimately. And you could create a story for your own legendary and how you acquire it that's unique to yourself and your character, something every other player in the game was bereft of.

So, go - you crazy butterfly and let your creative juices flow for the betterment of your game experience and that of others!

I think this is a great idea.

Also, not sure if you have ever checked out some of the role playing forums out there, but you may like to check out Valucre. I have found it to be quite a great place to role play in a forum setting. Not sure if that is your particular cup of tea, but throwing it out there.

If you really put in all that effort into writing 8 well-written paragraphs to if you should quit GW2. I would quit.

But, you do enjoy the game. If it is absolutely taking over your lives (you and your wife) I would quit for good. But if you absolutely love the game, but the interest is fading, I would say quit until the next official expansion. OR come back in 2-6 months.

Thank you every one for your responses. I agree that it does seem like I just need a break from the game, and perhaps I am taking minor issues more seriously than is warranted. Likewise I do feel that sticking around for my fiancée should be enough for a social type game as this. The problem however is that I’ve done that before; a few years ago. I basically forced myself to keep playing a free-to-play MMO I absolutely hated solely for the sake of my lover and her guild whom very mush still enjoyed the game. Because of that sticking around in a game I do not enjoy as much as I used to is less appealing than it might have once been. So I suppose I am just looking for a bit more of a personal excuse to keep playing so that I don’t disappoint her again (when I left the free-to-play it wasn’t exactly a smooth or, let’s just say, polite exit).

Bloggi, on 01 March 2013 - 06:19 AM, said:

The greatest issue that you have with a choice of class appears to be the lack of a perfect match in this game. Pretty obvious and not unexpected. So in playing a game that does not offer you the perfect choice (which I accept would happen probably in most games), a compromise has to be made. No offense to you whatsoever, but I fail to see how it's possible to hate *everything* about a thief, after I've played one myself. We need to see what exactly it is you dislike about the thief, whether it's specific skills or weapon sets which you could probably avoid using entirely, or something a bit more difficult to deal with. Also, why exactly is the stealth 'underwhelming'?

I’ll just touch on this briefly as it is not the point of this thread. Condensed into its essence I have three core problems with the thief, and they are as follows, from most upsetting to least.

*Survivability. I can deal with ridiculously low health pools, and I can deal with unreasonably weak armor, but I cannot deal with both on the same profession. I don’t need to tank mind you, in fact I prefer a ranged play style most of the time, but if the situation calls for me to do more than run away when my foe turns its gaze in my direction I’d like to be able to survive longer than two seconds.

*Initiative and versatility. The main reason I love the engineer is because of how versatile and yet still viable I feel. As I told my lover when justifying starting over after well over a hundred hours to make my engineer, “I feel useful with this profession.” However with the thief I felt like a burden. Every build I tried, regardless of what advice I sought here, just felt like a desperate effort to compensate for some weakness. I had to make a specialist life-steal build to have something close to a reasonable level of survivability, I had to make a specialist initiative-steal build to keep my skills available, or a specialist damage build just to keep up with my allies.

Everything I did was going “all-in” just to be functional in one aspect, and this killed any degree of versatility the profession may have had. Then there is the initiative system itself. Fantastic on paper and borderline over-powered in theory the prospect of having all your weapon skills right when you need them, even multiple times back-to-back, without worrying about cool downs was incredible. Yet in practice it was a pain in the arse. I was always rationing it, either sitting there spamming the auto-attack throughout entire fights because I was too terrified to possibly loose access to a defensive skill (again; low survivability) or perhaps blowing everything in an effort to spike down a tough foe only to be slaughtered before it recharged by a random mob I didn’t notice until it was too late (damn you stealth-skale!). Initiative just struck me as an extremely poorly balanced after-thought thrown in because someone realized that by itself steal was an underwhelming mechanic.

*Stealth. Put simply I hate MMO stealth. As I’ve always said “pressing one button to turn invisible is a trick for a lazy mage, not a stealthy rogue.” I hate it and I refuse to use it unless absolutely necessary. I never expect MMO stealth to be worthwhile, and always set out to find a functional non-stealth build when I can. To be honest I have my doubts if real stealth game-play is even possible in the MMO genre. Certainly I’ve never seen it done.
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Well as it happens I'm going on vacation for a week. So I'll check back here after that. Thank you again everyone for your responses, and you've given me some things to think about. Later.

Thank you every one for your responses. I agree that it does seem like I just need a break from the game, and perhaps I am taking minor issues more seriously than is warranted. Likewise I do feel that sticking around for my fiancée should be enough for a social type game as this. The problem however is that I’ve done that before; a few years ago. I basically forced myself to keep playing a free-to-play MMO I absolutely hated solely for the sake of my lover and her guild whom very mush still enjoyed the game. Because of that sticking around in a game I do not enjoy as much as I used to is less appealing than it might have once been. So I suppose I am just looking for a bit more of a personal excuse to keep playing so that I don’t disappoint her again (when I left the free-to-play it wasn’t exactly a smooth or, let’s just say, polite exit).

Maybe the both of you could explore some additional RPGs and find another that you enjoy and rotate playing the games together?

I adore playing MMOs with my husband, but I would never want him to feel forced to play the game I liked (not that your fiancee does, but hopefully she understands your dilemma). I hope your GW2 vacation gives you some fresh energy for the game!

*Stealth. Put simply I hate MMO stealth. As I’ve always said “pressing one button to turn invisible is a trick for a lazy mage, not a stealthy rogue.” I hate it and I refuse to use it unless absolutely necessary. I never expect MMO stealth to be worthwhile, and always set out to find a functional non-stealth build when I can. To be honest I have my doubts if real stealth game-play is even possible in the MMO genre. Certainly I’ve never seen it done.
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Well as it happens I'm going on vacation for a week. So I'll check back here after that. Thank you again everyone for your responses, and you've given me some things to think about. Later.

I think most things that have to do with your quitting/not quitting have been covered, so i just have some questions on this bit.

What kind of stealth do you want then? you say the kind that does not involve hitting a button, does this mean stealth in a sense like say, a splinter cell game? where you use the dark enviroment to hide? or more of an active camo/chameleon type of stealth where you more blend in with the enviroment but dont really go full out invis.

I am in no way saying you're expectation of stealth should be different, just that the premise of stealth is a hard one to handle. You can code AI to not see someone under certain conditions, whether they be lighting, blur, movement sound etc. but the big problem is these stealth mechanics being effective against a human who has more awareness of their surrounding then a pre-disposed AI algorithim for what is considered as "stealth".

Thats not to say i wouldn't love for a stelath system that functions like that, i just dont see it being possible in an MMO (as you stated).

Or im completely wrong in what you expect of stealth, and none of this will be relevant in a week.

I think most things that have to do with your quitting/not quitting have been covered, so i just have some questions on this bit.

What kind of stealth do you want then? you say the kind that does not involve hitting a button, does this mean stealth in a sense like say, a splinter cell game? where you use the dark enviroment to hide? or more of an active camo/chameleon type of stealth where you more blend in with the enviroment but dont really go full out invis.

I am in no way saying you're expectation of stealth should be different, just that the premise of stealth is a hard one to handle. You can code AI to not see someone under certain conditions, whether they be lighting, blur, movement sound etc. but the big problem is these stealth mechanics being effective against a human who has more awareness of their surrounding then a pre-disposed AI algorithim for what is considered as "stealth".

Thats not to say i wouldn't love for a stelath system that functions like that, i just dont see it being possible in an MMO (as you stated).

Or im completely wrong in what you expect of stealth, and none of this will be relevant in a week.

Not leaving on my trip for an hour, so I’ll throw a quick response to this out. Best MMO stealth I con conceive of:

Every player has a “stealth rating” and an “awareness score.” You’re stealth rating raises based on variables in the environment and your actions, such as sticking to shadows, not making nose, crutching, and approaching your target from behind. This stealth rating is checked against your target’s awareness to grant you varying levels of concealment, so even if they can technically detect you they may miss the clues by not paying attention. Likewise awareness widens and lengthens their “field of view,” thus making it easier for them to detect you.

Functionally it is the same, client side at least, as turning invisible. However the stealth effect “breaks” if your target, be they NPC or player, happens to turn around or you do something stupid like stand up or make a sound like swinging a weapon. This would still function as current MMO stealth does against living targets viewing events in third person, while at the same time incorporate actually stealth game-play like what is found in games such as The Elder Scrolls or Deus Ex.

Thank you every one for your responses. I agree that it does seem like I just need a break from the game, and perhaps I am taking minor issues more seriously than is warranted. Likewise I do feel that sticking around for my fiancée should be enough for a social type game as this. The problem however is that I’ve done that before; a few years ago. I basically forced myself to keep playing a free-to-play MMO I absolutely hated solely for the sake of my lover and her guild whom very mush still enjoyed the game. Because of that sticking around in a game I do not enjoy as much as I used to is less appealing than it might have once been. So I suppose I am just looking for a bit more of a personal excuse to keep playing so that I don’t disappoint her again (when I left the free-to-play it wasn’t exactly a smooth or, let’s just say, polite exit).

If you do something that you are supposed to enjoy but don't enjoy it, for someone else, it will eventually blow up in your face, and possibly others' as well. As a rule, never play a game for someone else's sake.

Aion has the most intense and strategical raids. Guild Wars 2 has a long way before attracting the mass at that level with Raids. Not sure how World of Warcraft is doing so this is my personal opinion.

Endgame in all mmorpgs is an issue. This has got nothing to do with Guild Wars 2.

Not sure why you felt disconnected with your thief and rerolled but this again is a trend where I think it mostly happens; most thieves reroll in most mmorpgs I have ever played.

I won't go too much in detail why is stealth a class-defined ability of a thief or expand it why a thief must have stealth in all around situations (PVE/PVP) but you get the drift. Also the same logic you are using could be applied for all the skills all classes are using.

Overall, I just do not think you got your priorities straight or your expectations. What exactly do you want to enjoy in Guild Wars 2?

Gamers reach a certain breaking point as they go through. Some of them get by because there is an incentive to keep them on playing. What is yours?

If you have put his much thought into it, you should probably quit playing the game. Don't delete your character, but walk away. Find another game, hobby, or seek counseling.

I don't mean to be rude, but as mentioned by several people already... IT IS JUST A GAME. I don't think any game will live up to 100% of anyone's expectations. The more you expect out of a game the more disapointing it can be. Try to learn to lower your expectations and just enjoy game play. If the mechanics and game play are not to your likings then stop playing that game.

I have played many games of many genres over the years. I have decided that MMORPG games are my favorite. I started playing the original GW a few years ago and grew tired of the perception of grind. I left and tried other games. I even started playing a lot of games on Playstation thinking I was bored with computer based games. I eventually realized that I missed GW. There were several reasons that made me come to that conclusion. When I started playing again, I did so with a more relaxed attitude and appreciated the game so much more. That eventually lead me to play GW2. This game has all the same characteristics that I like in a game. I am at peace with my choice in games. I hope you can find peace one day as well.

If you are playing a game that make you have negative emotions, it may not be the game for you.

Sounds like after months of play you have gotten your 60$ out of this game, so maybe go buy another, as 60$ will only go so far. I'm still having a blast but also i dont expect a game to cover all entertainment aspects of my life, so i also do other things such as go out side with friends and family. Hope this helps.